Vincent Schiavelli, 57, Character Actor in Films
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Vincent Schiavelli, the droopy-eyed character actor who appeared in scores of movies, including “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” and “Ghost,” died Monday of lung cancer at his home in Sicily. He was 57.
The New York-born Schiavelli, whose gloomy look made him perfect to play creepy or eccentric characters, appeared in some 150 film and television productions.
In “Fast Times at Ridgemont High,” he played the science teacher Mr. Vargas, who was married to the character portrayed by Lana Clarkson.
Schiavelli also appeared as Salieri’s valet in “Amadeus,” as “Cuckoo’s Nest” patient Frederickson, the subway ghost in “Ghost,” the organ grinder in “Batman Returns,” and as Chester in “The People vs. Larry Flynt.”
He also wrote three cookbooks and food articles for magazines and newspapers, possibly inheriting his love for cooking from his grandfather, who had been a cook for an Italian baron before moving to America.
His books include “Many Beautiful Things” (2002), a compilation of recipes and anecdotes about his visits to Polizzi Generosa, the small hilltop town that was his grandparents’ birthplace.
Schiavelli had also worked in Italy, including in 2001 when he directed a theater piece in Sicily based on nine fables.
